


danger

by strawberrySouda



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Denial of Feelings, Lowercase, M/M, Metaphors, Pining, Poetic, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-20
Updated: 2020-02-21
Packaged: 2021-02-28 04:27:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22817770
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/strawberrySouda/pseuds/strawberrySouda
Summary: "iwa-chan?" oikawa calls quietly. iwaizumi doesn't want to make himself look any dumber than he already has, so he steels himself and clears his throat. his mouth is drier than the surface of mars."yeah, shittykawa?"--yeah so space,
Relationships: Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru
Comments: 13
Kudos: 96





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I'M SO PROUD OF THIS NO ONE LOOK AT ME

oikawa has always been attractive, iwaizumi thinks--in that impersonal, objective way, at least. the way someone can say a galaxy is beautiful without knowing anything about the stars within. because no matter what hanamaki and matsukawa say, iwaizumi is _not_ in love with his best friend. he's not! it's a completely objective admission of attractive-ness. no feelings whatsoever.

but damn it if oikawa in glasses _doesn't_ make iwaizumi feel things.

he was just supposed to be dropping in for an impromptu visit (such is the privilege of being someone's childhood best friend), but now he's made a complete fool of himself by walking in to oikawa's room, seeing him wearing _glasses_ , and immediately walking back out. _i've started something i'm not prepared to finish_ , iwaizumi thinks. the glasses themselves would probably look terrible on anyone else, with a normal front and a stupid galaxy pattern on the sides that iwaizumi absolutely does not find endearing, but it's oikawa--dumb space nerd oikawa, who used to want to be an astronaut and watches alien documentaries regularly and is considering astrophysics as a career path "just in case"--and he's fucking _cute_. objectively. _shit_.

"iwa-chan?" oikawa calls quietly. iwaizumi doesn't want to make himself look any dumber than he already has, so he steels himself and clears his throat. his mouth is drier than the surface of mars.

"yeah, shittykawa?"

"whatcha doing out there?"

iwaizumi swallows hard. he didn't think this far ahead. "my mom called, i'm texting her back." it's the first thing that comes to mind, and he's pretty sure oikawa is fully aware that his mom never calls him, but it's worth a try.

"oh, okay. come in soon, though!"

he does come in soon after that. he waits about thirty seconds--roughly the time it would take him to have a short exchange with his mother--then opens the door again. oikawa smiles at him and _fuck_ _,_ iwaizumi thinks, _not fair_. he's not allowed to be this pretty.

before iwaizumi can think twice, he marches over to oikawa and pulls the glasses right off his face. oikawa stares at him blankly, eyes slightly wide and more than a little bit unfocused, and iwaizumi wonders for a moment if oikawa's eyes are like the telescope lenses he'd ranted about--the ones that just wouldn't focus no matter how he turned the dial. he'd be smart enough to make it as an astrophysicist, iwaizumi is sure. "iwa-chan, i know they're ugly, but i kind of need my glasses to _see_."

right. ugly. yes, that. ugly, not devastatingly cute. very ugly. for someone so intelligent, he's pretty stupid. iwaizumi pretends to inspect the sides of the glasses. he has no idea if the stars are a randomly generated pattern made to mimic a nebula or if they're real stars, part of a real galaxy that he could hypothetically see. oikawa would probably know the answer. instead of asking, he says, "thought you said you weren't gonna get nerd glasses. i can't think of anything nerdier than space-themed glasses."

"i couldn't help it!" oikawa cries indignantly. "you _know_ i have a space thing!"

iwaizumi _does_ know. and even if he didn't, the space-themed _everything_ in oikawa's bedroom would have tipped him off immediately. dark blue walls with constellation decals, galaxy duvet cover, glow-in-the-dark stars on his ceiling, alien-patterned lightswitch plate. it's always been endearing--not that he thinks so, of course, but he supposes it could be, for someone else. he rolls his eyes. "yeah, yeah. nerd."

" _iwa-chan_!"

"nerdykawa."

oikawa pouts. "if you're gonna insult me, at least give me back my glasses so i can look at you while you do."

"i'm gonna poke you in the eye on purpose."

"you better not!"

carefully, iwaizumi leans forward and lines oikawa's glasses up, sliding them back on. he thinks he might prefer them over his contacts, just a bit. he could definitely get used to seeing oikawa like this more often. or not. he's definitely not in love. he doesn't notice the small flecks of gold in oikawa's eyes as they sharpen back into focus, standing out like stars against the night sky, because he's not in love. he'd never fall in love with oikawa. he leans back, looking at him evenly. "they suit you, i guess. nerdy glasses for the biggest nerd i know."

"iwa-chan, stop bullying me! people are gonna start to think you don't actually like me, y'know!"

"maybe that's the point," iwaizumi says, ignoring the fact that he likes oikawa a significant amount. "maybe i want people to think i'd never associate with such a nerd."

" _mean_ _,_ iwa-chan. _mean_. i'm going to tell everyone about your godzilla phase, and then it's over for you."

"shittykawa, it isn't just a _phase_ , it's a fucking lifestyle!" he's joking, but he thinks oikawa would say the same about space. it's not just a _thing_ for him. iwaizumi knows he's passionate enough to dedicate the whole rest of his life to studying the night sky. he'd make a wonderful scientist.

oikawa raises his hands in mock surrender. "okay, fine! fine. i'll tell everyone about your godzilla _lifestyle_ , then."

"you wouldn't dare."

"wouldn't i?" oikawa smirks, eyes sharpening that little bit extra like they always do, but it seems magnified now behind the lenses. maybe it really is--iwaizumi doesn't know what's wrong with oikawa's eyes, after all, just that there's _somet_ _hing_ wrong. his heart skips a beat regardless. these new glasses are about as dangerous as the final frontier itself, he realizes.

"you wouldn't," he repeats, cursing himself for sounding so breathless. he's always kind of liked danger.

he's definitely in love.

fuck.


	2. Chapter 2

iwaizumi thought he was okay with this realization. he thought he was okay with maybe, possibly being very much in love with oikawa. he knows now, trying to do homework at the coffee table only to be distracted time and time again, that he isn't.

hanamaki and matsukawa have become absolutely insufferable, for one thing. he wishes he could go back to the days when they would tease him relentlessly and he was secure in the thought that what they were saying wasn't true. the thought that yeah, maybe he's not the most in-tune with his emotions, but he's not dense. density... stars are dense, made of heavy gases and elements that radiate and convect to synthesize energy and...

fuck. _shit_. he's in deep, and he's not okay with it at all. he shakes his head and looks down at his homework, the three problems he's managed to finish in the past half hour staring back at him. he isn't even bad at math, and the problems aren't difficult either--not like physics would be, if oikawa's opinion holds any truth. he groans. _stop thinking about oikawa_ , he tells himself, not for the first time tonight.

that proves to be difficult when his phone chimes with a text. from oikawa. because the universe seems to have decided that iwaizumi is not allowed to know peace.

°•°

**#1 dumbass [8:32 PM]**

iwa-chaaaan (｡•́︿•̀｡)

**Me [8:32 PM]**

what

**Me [8:32 PM]**

the fuck

**Me [8:32 PM]**

do you want

**#1 dumbass [8:33 PM]**

i'm coming over!!!! (◕ᴗ◕✿)

**Me [8:33 PM]**

i don't trust you

**#1 dumbass [8:33 PM]**

well, too bad, because im almost there ( ꈍᴗꈍ)

**Me [8:33 PM]**

SHITTYKAWA

**Me [8:34 PM]**

I'M GONNA KILL YOU SOMEDAY

**#1 dumbass [8:34 PM]**

yeah yeah yeah sure

**#1 dumbass [8:34 PM]**

you can kill me after you come open the door <(￣︶￣)>

**Me [8:35 PM]**

newsflash idiot, you know where the spare key is

**Me [8:35 PM]**

and you better not distract me

°•°

_at least_ _, not any more than you already have_ _,_ iwaizumi thinks bitterly, putting his phone away. he looks back down at his homework, trying to accept the fact that he's never going to finish it. oikawa's probably been done with this same assignment for an hour or more, damn smart bastard. iwaizumi would be mad, but the idea of oikawa helping him, head resting on his shoulder as usual, voice too soft around the edges is--

the sound of the back door closing startles him out of his thoughts, and he feels like a kid who just got caught doing something bad. he jumps, yelling, "don't you know how to warn someone?!"

"nope!" oikawa chirps, coming in through the kitchen. his tone is bright like a solar flare, and it burns like one too. iwaizumi gulps. it's going to be a long night. "besides, i just texted you, like, two minutes ago." he drops a bag of snacks on the coffee table next to iwaizumi's pencil, making a sound that seems like it's loud enough to travel through the vacuum of space, then sits on the floor next to him. iwaizumi does his best not to react, not even looking at him. "iwa-chan, you aren't done with that yet?"

iwaizumi rolls his eyes. "fuck off, i just started." he looks in the bag. "what's this for? you wouldn't bring snacks if you were just showing up to cause problems."

"it's nothing! just finish your homework, silly, i'll be here." oikawa pulls his knees up to his chest and rests his head on them, looking at iwaizumi's paper intently, the same quiet focus iwaizumi sees when oikawa looks through a telescope. iwaizumi glances over at him for the first time, and he's wearing those goddamn glasses again. he probably doesn't even realize what he's doing to him.

"fine," iwaizumi says, even though he's pretty sure it isn't "nothing". he picks up his pencil and finally manages to get some work done. oikawa never rests his head on his shoulder (thank _god_ ) and his voice doesn't go quite so soft when he corrects him, so iwaizumi chalks it up as a win when he puts his homework away with it being _done_. "if i ever have to look at another graph, i'm gonna commit a felony." oikawa laughs, but it sounds more perfunctory than amused--like it's just a way to let iwaizumi know he's really listening. "you gonna tell me what's up now?"

oikawa blinks at him, eyes wide like saturn's rings, as if iwaizumi hasn't always known him better than to believe a lie like "it's nothing". "iwa-chan, you know me too well." he stretches his legs out under the table and tips his head back to rest against the couch. "you've been weird lately."

_oh fuck_ , iwaizumi thinks, _not good_ _._ "weird how?" he tries. he can fix this if he can convince oikawa he has no idea what he's been doing, but he knows _oikawa_ knows there's something more to his glances now. he's been looking at oikawa the way oikawa looks at the moon--longing and soft and gentle, all things that don't sound like they even belong in the same _sentence_ as iwaizumi. if oikawa's ever felt this way towards another person, iwaizumi never would have noticed. the words fit him more, at least.

"i don't know," oikawa says. "different. not really distant, i guess. just different."

iwaizumi would breathe a sigh of relief if it wouldn't draw extra suspicion. it's not _directly_ the fact that he's in love with him. that's a win, at least. "sorry," iwaizumi replies, even though he's really not that sorry. "i'm not trying to act differently or anything."

"so we're not drifting apart?"

iwaizumi blinks. _that's_ what this is about? really? he doesn't even have to think about his answer. "don't be dumb. of _course_ we aren't drifting apart. we're like... shit, i don't know. i was gonna say something cheesy about space 'cause i know that'd cheer you up." _are you ser_ _ious_ _?_ iwaizumi thinks. _the one time_ _i_ _actu_ _ally need poetic bullshit_ _,_ _i_ _can't think of anyt_ _hing_ _?_

"like the moon orbiting the earth," oikawa supplies absently. he thinks on this for a bit, staring up at the ceiling. "iwa-chan, did you know objects can break out of their orbital path?"

"huh?" iwaizumi makes a face. "isn't that supposed to be impossible?"

oikawa shakes his head. "collision, speeding up, slowing down... orbits can change. the moon is moving away from us by 3.78 centimeters every year. it's moved roughly 2.5 million kilometers since the time of the dinosaurs."

"o...kay. why are we talking about this? why do you even know that?"

"i don't know. just statistics in a book. but that's not what's happening to _us_ , right?"

iwaizumi sighs, grabbing oikawa's hand where it rests by his side. "no, dumbass. that's not what's happening to us. get it in your thick skull that you aren't getting rid of me."

oikawa makes an offended noise in the back of his throat, finally, _finally_ looking at iwaizumi again. "as if i would want to! stupid iwa-chan!" he glances down at their joined hands and smiles. iwaizumi's heart skips a beat and he tries to tell himself now is not the time, but oikawa looks back up at him again and his eyelashes seem stupidly long right now--there's no way they've _always_ been like that. "i'm not leaving either. i'll make you tired of me first, and then stick around even longer just to piss you off."

iwaizumi forgets every ounce of poetic bullshit he's ever thought towards oikawa in less than one second. "you're such a shitty person."

"that means your best friend is a shitty person, so doesn't that make you equally as shitty?"

"that isn't how that works!"

"isn't it, though?" oikawa crosses his arms and tilts his head up like he's just won. "go ahead and give up right now, save yourself the trouble."

"trashykawa--"

"can't hear you over the sound of being right, iwa-chan!"

"oh my god, shut _up_. you're such an asshole."

"make me."

there are a couple ways iwaizumi could take this, and one of them, he is determined to avoid. physical force it is, then, he decides, tackling oikawa. to oikawa's credit, he at least puts up a decent fight once he's down, even though iwaizumi isn't really trying his hardest and oikawa can't quite stop laughing. they both know he'll never win in a fight of off-court strength anyway, whether the fight is joking or not, so it's not like it matters.

iwaizumi is about to push harder and really secure this as a win, tightening his grip on oikawa's wrists and driving forward, but oikawa stops pushing back against him just as he does. "see? i win, as usual," iwaizumi taunts breathlessly, the high of success distracting him from the way he has oikawa's wrists pinned and the sound of his laughter fading into a sigh.

oikawa doesn't react at all, just looking at him with big, round eyes focused somewhere just below iwaizumi's own. it would almost be concerning if his eyes weren't so damn pretty, sparkling in the now-dim light of iwaizumi's living room. he seems completely transfixed by whatever he's seeing, and iwaizumi wishes he could understand.

"whatcha looking at?" iwaizumi asks, frowning as he tries to follow oikawa's line of sight. oikawa swallows hard, blinking, and pulls one wrist out of iwaizumi's slackening grasp.

iwaizumi doesn't get it when oikawa brushes his fingertips over his cheek, or when oikawa's own cheeks fill with color, and he definitely doesn't get it when oikawa's only response to his question is, "you." iwaizumi makes a face at the lackluster answer ( _yeah, duh, where else would you be looking?_ he thinks), then realizes his position and pushes himself up and off of oikawa, staying close by just in case oikawa decides to elaborate any time soon.

oikawa sits up after a good thirty seconds, covering his face with one hand. iwaizumi's pretty sure he broke oikawa or something. "freckles," oikawa says, and that's not much better than the other thing he said, which _oh fuck oh jesus what if oikawa feels the same w--_ "you have freckles, iwa-chan."

iwaizumi frowns. he most certainly does not. "i do _not_ ," he says. "you're seeing things."

whatever weird stupor oikawa was in, he seems to have broken out of it now, as he whines, "iwa-chaaaan, i'm not _crazy_! you totally do!"

iwaizumi repeats that he does not have freckles, because he's been alive for nearly two decades now and he's pretty sure he'd know something like that about himself. he doesn't have freckles.

later, after oikawa leaves, he looks at his cheeks really closely in the mirror. dusting his cheekbones are faint, tiny freckles.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sobs  
> this is so gay

**Author's Note:**

> STAN IWAOI STAN SPACE NERD OIKAWA STAN THE WHOLE MF UNIVERSE


End file.
